The Reception Deception
by HoneyBee31
Summary: Dryden hatches a master plan for a Masquerade Ball in Fanelia to be a cure for Van's broken heart. As fate would have it, Chid also has something (or someone) up his sleeve. Will our destined pair meet again? It might take more than Gravity to untangle this mess


_Thanks for reading my new story. Escaflowne is a bit of a departure for me from my usual work, but I was just in that kind of mood._

 _Let me know what you think!_

* * *

The royal ballroom was aglow this evening, lit by the multitude of candles burning in elegant chandeliers. Their light glittered off the elaborate costumes worn by the esteemed guests attending Fanelia's first-ever masquerade ball.

Van sighed impatiently from behind his white domino mask, his keen eyes surveying the crowd that danced and dined before him. This whole thing had been Dryden's stupid idea to begin with and, as per usual for the Austurian King's plans, it was Van who was paying the price. He crossed his arms over his chest in a moody gesture and leaned back against the wall defiantly.

"Your costume is certainly an effective disguise. " Allen commented at his side, pausing to take a sip of his vino. "Your manner, on the other hand, is a dead give-away."

Van spared him a sideways glanced of annoyance as he straightened from his customary slouch to something he hoped looked more...something. Why was he doing this again?

Allen answered the question for him. "I thought the whole point of this was so you could mingle with the debutantes without the ladies knowing who you were." He made a point of looking around Van's current state of near-solitude. In the corner he had chosen near the refreshments there were scant few guests. "You should be getting out there."

"I wanted to observe how people interact with me without having to be part of the interaction." Van replied in a low voice. "This business is...difficult."

The two men looked over to where the young man they had found to be the King's double was dancing with an eligible woman from Austuria. Of course no one said he was the King, that would be lying, but Dryden had reassured Van that all was fair in a Masquerade ball.

"Anyone could be anyone," he had said with his typical wink.

The young man that was convincingly Van was behaving in a manner opposite to the King himself. He was out in the centre of the dance floor, eagerly dancing with the royal ladies who had come to the event with the hope of catching the King's eye. His current partner was a particularly beautiful woman and Van watched as his double whispered something to the woman that made her tip her head back and laugh.

Van sighed and looked away from the scene to glance out the window. His eyes were drawn, as they always were, to the Mystic Moon hanging low in the sky. Even though he no longer wore The Pendant, a quick flash of smiling green eyes came to him nonetheless. He almost smiled in return before he remembered why he was in this situation in the first place. He turned his back to the window resolutely, tipping his chin in the air in defiance.

Allen observed his movements and couldn't help but comment. "I still think all this will be in vain."

Van kept his gaze fixed forward as he ground out between clenched teeth. "I told you: She. Said. No."

"Knowing her, I doubt that she turned you down that resolutely." Allen replied in the same calm, damnably confident tone. "And knowing you, you probably did something to make her angry."

"Fanelia needs a Queen." Van said in resignation. "You heard the law as well as any of us. The day of my birth quickly approaches and I have not been having any success with my current methods to find a bride."

"Your own father ignored that law." Allen reminded him. "And you have already found your bride."

"My people need stability." Van told him, as he had told himself a million times tonight. The whole reason behind this ruse, the whole reason behind everything he did, was always his people. "A queen and an heir will help secure the future."

"Here I thought you were a romantic." Allen sighed and set down his drink. "Well if you want to perch yourself out here and watch, I'll leave you to your observation."

Van didn't bother to reply as he watched the Knight leave his side and join the crowd.

Alone again, Van felt his original awkwardness in his costume return. The full face mask was dreadfully hot and itchy, as was the heavy head covering Millerna had wrapped over his wild hair. He worried that one of their neighbouring nations would discover the deception and be offended. He would have Dryden's head if this stupid plan caused there to be a war.

He was interrupted from his misery by the sound of harsh coughing coming from the person standing beside him. He turned toward them, concerned they might be choking. He found a slim woman doubled over with her hand clenched to her chest as she coughed to clear her drink.

"Are you alright?" He asked her quietly, taking a step to stand closer to her to avoid having his voice carry. Fear of discovery had also prevented him from speaking to many people in the room. Giving her another quick once-over, he noted that this woman did not seem to be familiar.

She was dressed in the traditional dress clothes of the women of Freid. She wore a golden gown with a loose drape over one shoulder, leaving her other shoulder bared. It was gathered in a smooth, slim skirt with a complicated knot at the waist. The sound of her coughing was accentuated by the ringing of her gold bell ornament that concealed her hair from view. He was taken aback when she ceased her coughing and smiled at him reassuringly, her vibrant green eyes blinding him temporarily in shock.

"Yes, thank you." She said with a demure smile. "I just saw something that...upset...my concentration."

Her smile fell as her gaze returned to where she had been looking. Van turned to see what she had been watching. It was his double dancing with the Princess of Egzardia, smiling and looking like he was having the time of his life.

He looked over to the woman again. She had crossed her arms across her chest and took a dangerously large swig of her glass of vino before turning her face away.

"Do you know those dancers?" He asked her, his dark eyes sharp on her face from behind his mask. A delicate gold mask obscured the upper part of her face, but the lush fullness of her lips was on display and heightened with a soft shine.

"I think it is obviously Va-King Van." She replied, her lips forming a slight pout that turned into a sharp frown as she added. "And his new... consort, I guess."

Van's eyebrows furrowed behind his mask, his heart somehow simultaneously speeding up and slowing down. A woman with green eyes who would be so upset by his double? Could it be?

"Have you met the King?" He inquired, trying to keep his voice low and level.

She took another sip of her drink and then paused thoughtfully. "Yes, I knew him."

"Where did you meet him? In Freid?" He inquired, eyes sharpening on her face even as she watched the dancers in distraction.

"Freid?" Her nose wrinkled in confusion. "Why would I have...oh, uh, yes. It must have been Freid. Because, of course, that is where I am from." Her voice raised to a high pitch as she seemed to realise her blunder, gesturing at her golden garment to support her claim.

"How do you know him?" He moved closer to her, drawn by the faint hope of who she could be. For her part, the woman seemed to not be bothered by his proximity.

"We...uh...met during the war. In passing. Sort of." She babbled, looking down to the floor. Though he couldn't see it because of her mask, Van knew she would be blushing.

"And you are upset with him?" He prodded further.

"Oh, no. Not with his majesty." She drawled the word, clearly upset.

"May I ask what has you so troubled?" He was so close to her now that all he had to do was whisper. The pout of her lips was too enchanting. He watched them thin into a sharp line as she bit out.

"I travelled all this way to see a guy," She divulged, peaking at him out of the corner of her eye. She then scowled very obviously at Van's double and grumbled, "He turned out to be a huge jerk!"

Van's eyebrows rose at her peculiar slang speech, so typical of Hitomi. He couldn't help himself but tease her a little. "Travelled all the way from Freid, you mean?"

He perhaps leaned a bit too hard on the Freid part of the sentence because he saw her shoulders tense from their relaxed position. With rigidly straight posture she turned to look at him with her vino to her lips. She raised her chin so she just peered down on him through her long eyelashes. "Yes." She said with a proper tone. "From Freid."

Before he could respond, she interrupted him. "I don't know why you're asking so many questions but I am already having a lousy night and I didn't come to this party to be interrogated. If you'll excuse me." And she gave him a light curtsey before scurrying off and disappearing into the crowd.

* * *

Hitomi stalked quickly away from the nosey stranger, embarrassed by her inability to maintain a simple deception, as well as angry at Van. Well, her emotions with regards to Van were more complicated, but for now she would settle on angry. Guilty and remorseful could wait until later.

In truth the person she was made at was herself. Her regret at turning down Van's proposal sat with its ever-present heaviness in her gut. She just wasn't ready yet when he had asked. They hadn't really known how she would get back to Gaea anyways.

Besides, she hadn't said no! She just said she wasn't ready! He hadn't mentioned anything about a law saying he had to get married. When she had asked for more time to decide he had unexpectedly flipped out on her. She thought he would cool down and come back. She hadn't been expecting radio silence for the last 6 months.

Last week, her decision to go to the local market for some fresh air with Yukari had been just a fluke. They were strolling among the vendors when her eye had caught a familiar pink gleam in the sunshine. Although she had been tricked numerous times before, she was unable to help herself and had rushed over to inspect the ring. The pink stone, so similar to the pendant Van now scorned, was ensconced in a simple gold setting.

Picking it up, Hitomi could hardly believe her eyes. She had felt the wheels of fate spin back into motion. Yukari, who had run over to see what had caught Hitomi's interest, took one look at the ring before wrapping her friend up in a hug and wish her good luck. Almost as soon as she had slid the ring on her finger, the pillar of light had appeared.

She had expected it would deliver her directly to Fanelia, or perhaps the green forests surrounding it. Imagine her surprise when she appeared in Freid. She descended from the pillar to the waiting company of Prince Chid in the Fortuna Temple.

The not-so-young prince was delighted to see her again. He spoke of his idea, that if the power of Atlantis was what moved her between worlds, then the most concentrated source of it should be able to draw her back. When she picked up the stone from Gaea in the market it had formed a bridge that allowed her to return.

Chid had told her of Van's predicament and he hatched a plan to surprise the King. He thought she could come to the ball dressed as a member of the contingent from Freid and the disguise would last just long enough for Van to have the surprise of his life.

Well instead it was her that was in for a surprise. Hitomi sighed again moodily as she made her way through the crowd towards the doors leading to the gardens. Although it was a masquerade, she had figured Van wouldn't be too into dressing up. Somehow it didn't seem very much like the dignified and serious King. So when she saw him, standing in the middle of the ballroom greeting guests...not just guest but female guests...with friendliness and charm, her eyes almost fell out of her head.

She had approached him, feeling both frightened and delighted, only to have him give her the same smile and greeting as the other female guests. There was not a minuscule hint of recognition on his face.

What was worse was that she didn't feel like she recognized him either.

Had six months really been too long? Van told her he wouldn't wear the pendant any more, that it was cruel that he be tempted by their half-lived love. The thought of losing him had shaken her. It spurred her into action. Though finding the ring was a fluke, her finally, finally getting to Gaea wasn't.

She was ready to stay.

And she had already lost him.

She pushed through the glass doors that lead outside into the warm night without a second thought. She never noticed all the eyes that were watching her every move.

* * *

Chid rubbed his tired forehead, finding it hard to believe his happy surprise could have gone so poorly. To be fair, he could have hardly expected this change in mood out of Van. For the last 6 months all he had done was slouch around like a moody grump and, just when Chid had finally found the solution to all his problems, that's when he decides to be charming and debonair.

"It's not like you to be frowning at a party." Millerna inquired with a cheery tone as she came up to his side. She looped her arm through his and turned to look at the crowd. "My, there are a many lovely ladies here. None of them catch your eye?"

"It isn't the party, Aunt Millerna." He replied, smiling sadly. "I have just been disappointed as I had prepared a great surprise and now I fear my work has been ruined."

"Surprise?" Millerna smiled at him. "For Van's birthday? How sweet of you Chid! What can I do to help?"

"You can explain to me what happened to Van." Chid said with a sigh. "He didn't even recognize Hitomi!"

"Hitomi?!" Millerna's face paled and she let go of Chid's arm to raise her hand to her mouth in surprise. "Hitomi is here?"

Her distress must have alerted her husband to the discussion as Dryden casually appeared at her side. Not far behind him was Allen Schezar.

"What has you so upset?" Dryden asked quietly, giving Chid a gently accusatory look. "Is it the baby?"

"Hitomi is here!" She hissed at him, glaring daggers at her husband. "I told you this was a stupid idea. She introduced herself to the fake Van and he didn't recognize her!"

"Hitomi is here!" Dryden and Allen repeated incredulously.

"Fake Van?" Chid replied with furrowed brows behind his mask.

The group shared a guilty look and quickly explained the deception they had planned with Van. Though part of his face was hidden, Chid couldn't help a small grin at the creativity of the plan. He then frowned in thought of how it all could have gone so wrong.

"We'll have to fix this." Allen interjected, "we can't let Van find another bride if Hitomi has returned."

The men nodded and began to move to find their respective prey. Millerna halted them in their place.

"You may not have to do anything." She said with an impish smile.

The group watched as a slim silhouette in a gold dress slipped out the glass doors to the garden.

Only a few steps behind trailed a man dressed all in white, his face obscured by a full face mask.

"Destiny is at work tonight." Dryden said with a smile.

* * *

Hitomi took a deep cleansing breath of the cool fresh air. She crossed her arms across her chest to ward off the chill as she made her way to stand beside a large fountain. She set her gaze over the expanse of darkened gardens, imagining their beauty in the full daylight. She could almost picture walking here with Van, having him quietly guide her through the winding shrubbery, maybe stopping to steal a kiss.

She felt a light touch on her covered arm and turned to see who disturbed her reverie. She was greeted by a tall man in a green costume with a green facemask. He took her hand as he knelt before her . "My lady," he said by way of introduction. He then proceeded speak quickly in a language she didn't understand.

Given the inquisitive look on his face, she presumed he has asked her a question, but she couldn't for the devil of her figure out what the hell he had asked. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment and she tilted her head to the side in confusion.

He asked a different question, rising to stand in front of her. The eyes she could see held gentle concern.

"He says that you look beautiful." A quiet voice told her from over her right shoulder. She almost screamed in surprise when she saw the man in the white domino mask standing behind her

She whipped around to stare at him. "Don't do that!" She said breathlessly, "you scared me."

The white domino mask just shrugged. "He's also asking you to dance." His tone sounded disinterested but his eyes were sharp as they examined her from behind his mask. Eyes that did looks sort of familiar...

"Can...you tell the gentleman 'Thank you, but no'?" Hitomi asked quietly.

The white masked stranger seemed to have ideas of his own and moved up to stand beside her. His heavily clothed draped across her shoulders as his hand wrapped over her bare arm and pulled her against him. He said something to the man in whatever language they were speaking, his tone hard and final. Hitomi could barely piece together what it might have been, so distracted by the warmth that spread from him where their skin touched. As he spoke to the man his thumb brushed absently back and forth on the edge of her shoulder causing goosebumps to erupt in its wake.

The green masked man gave them both an apologetic smile before bowing again and walking away.

HItomi turned to face the white masked man, still within the circle of his arm. "What did you say to him?"

The man looked away. "I did what you asked and answered him in his language," he replied, looking over at her from the corner of his eye. " It was the native language spoken in Freid."

Hitomi felt her blush, which had finally started to cool, bloom back onto her face in full force. She pulled her arms in tight and stepped away from the man's embrace. She could see the amusement in his eyes and didn't have to see his mouth to know he was smirking at her. Hitomi gave him a considering look before giving a sigh of resignation.

"Alright," She said, sinking down to sit on the fountain's edge. "I think you already know I'm not from Fried."

He made a sound of assent and sat down beside her.

"I'm...I'm actually from the Mystic Moon." She whispered quietly, tilting her face down to peak up at him from behind her eyelashes. There was no visible reaction in his body and she couldn't see enough of his face to know if he was surprised. She wasn't sure if she could handle it if this stranger replied with the expected "from that accursed place."

His reaction was hard to read. "The Mystic Moon?" He asked, trying to seem nonchalant and not quite managing it. "And how did you end up in Fanelia tonight?"

He was sitting just a bit too close to her and she could feel his warmth against her bared arm. Any movement he made caused their sides to brush against each other. Hitomi felt a traitorous warmth spreading through her body sitting next to this stranger. She found herself blushing and started to smile before her expression turned to a frown. She had just travelled all this way to see Van, and now after his rejection, was she really so quick to find someone else?

"How is it that you travelled to Fanelia?" He repeated as he tilted his head back to look at the stars. The movement distracted the edge of his mask from the high collar of his shirt, revealing a tanned, delicate stretch of skin that drew Hitomi's attention for a moment.

"Chid...The Duke of Fried," She corrected quickly "he was able to use the Fortuna Temple's power to call to me."

"You were able to return because of your connection to the Duke of Fried?" He asked with agitation. "Is that all it took? For HIM to call for you?"

Hitomi could hear the hard edge to his words. She turned her head to look at him in confusion at what could have offended him. She thought about his familiar eyes and a suspicion began to grow.

"Well, no." She replied slowly. She lifted her hand to show him her ring, the moonlight reflecting off the pink stone.

As she opened her mouth to explain, the stranger abruptly stood and turned his back to her. " I see, so he has also given you a ring. Well, if you have returned for Duke Chid then I should not be occupying you out here."

He tensed as if to move away from her. Hitomi felt at a loss for why he would be offended. It was almost as if...could it be...?

"No, wait! Let me explain!" She reached out her hand to stop him by grabbing hold of his wrist. Her fingers found his pulse.

She felt his heart beating in perfect synch with her own. The way it had been ever since that fateful day in Freid.

"...Van?" She whispered breathlessly.

He tilted his head down and turned back towards her, not meeting her eyes. "Hello, Hitomi." He replied flatly.

She stared at him in shock, not sure if she should scream or slap him or jump in his arms and kiss him senseless. She settled for none of those and just kept staring at him in silence.

A pair of stray party-goers stumbled upon the couple, making enough noise to break the tense silence.

Van seemed to come back to himself and realise she was about to make a scene, which she totally was, so he grabbed her by the elbow and pulled her deeper into the gardens.

Van lead her through a winding series of hedges until they reached a secluded part of the garden. There was a small arbour with beautiful fragrant flowers growing around it. Only when he was sure of their privacy did he release her and step away from her side.

She rounded on him first. "Just what the hell are you playing at?" She hissed.

His eyes rounded behind his mask. "Me?"

Hitomi rolled her eyes and grabbed hold of the mask. "Stop hiding behind this, Van. I know it's you." With a deft pull the mask and elaborate head-dress fell away to land soundlessly on the grass behind him. Hitomi stared at his exposed face with wide eyes.

Although she had already known, she still somehow was shocked to see his handsome face staring back at her. His lips were pressed in a thin line. His eyes were staring down at the ground. She could tell he was upset, and hell was she mad, but she also couldn't believe she had made it back. She was finally with Van!

Her emotions were running so high, and maybe she had a few glasses of vino, that she couldn't help herself and slapped him soundly across the face before throwing her arms around his neck.

"Oh Van, " she whispered against his neck.

Slowly his arms came up to meet her embrace. One arm crossed over her back to grip her bare shoulder, the other reached up to cradle her head against his chest. His grip was tight as he whispered her name in return. His fingers dove into her hair, dislodging her golden headdress that fell to the grass with a loud clank. She felt him slide the ribbon that held her mask in place out of its knot. Gravity pulled it away as she turned to look up at him.

Van smoothed his hand through her hair, his eyes taking in all her familiar features. His expression looked tender, but a bit dispondent as he asked. "Have you...why have you come back...?"

Hitomi looked down to the side, unable to meet his eyes. "After...well after the last time we talked..I was feeling terrible how I left things between us. "

"I thought you said you couldn't come back to Gaea?" He whispered, looking at her face that was still turned away. "You... didn't want to give up your life on the Mystic Moon."

"I wasn't sure that I could." She replied quietly, "but then...after you shut me out...I didn't realise how much you were a part of my life. All the time I talked to you or how I liked being able to just feel your presence. Even though I was on the Mystic Moon, I was still always with you."

She took a shaky sigh in, the days of emotion from their time apart still fresh in her mind. "I will miss my life there. But I realised I what I really couldn't live my life without...was you."

Hitomi looked him straight in the eye. "However I got here, I got here to be with you."

"To stay?" He asked, searching her eyes. His voice broke when he whispered. "Please tell me it's to stay."

She smiled, tears welling up in her eyes. All she could do was nod yes.

The hand that had been in her hair came to gently cup the side of her face. The soft expression on his face made her heart clench in her chest. Hitomi couldn't wait any longer and she gripped the front of his costume with both hands and pulled his face down to hers where their lips met in a gentle kiss.

It started out testing and unsure, just a soft meeting of lips in the darkness. Hitomi released her hold on the front of his costume to wrap her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Van seemed surprised for a moment before responding with heated pressure on her mouth. When she opened her lips to deepen the kiss, all further thoughts were lost.

While the pair continued to get reacquainted in the garden, a silent quartet stood by and watched them.

" Oh ye of little faith," Dryden reached up and scratched the back of his head, one of his eyes closing while the other arm wrapped around Millerna's shoulders. " I told you guys: my plans always work."


End file.
